Granulocyte Macrophage Colony Stimulating Factor (GM-CSF), a 14.6 kDa protein consisting of 127 amino acid residues (Ala18-Glu144) and fused to a C-terminal His-tag (6x His), is a potent species specific stimulator of bone marrow cells and several other cell types. GM-CSF was initially characterized as a growth factor that can support the in vitro colony formation of granulocyte-macrophage progenitors. It is produced by a number of different cell types (including activated T cells, B cells, macrophages, mast cells, endothelial cells and fibroblasts) in response to cytokine or immune and inflammatory stimuli. Besides granulocyte-macrophage progenitors, GM-CSF is also a growth factor for erythroid, megakaryocyte and eosinophil progenitors. On mature hematopoietic cells, GM-CSF is a survival factor for and activates the effector functions of granulocytes, monocytes/macrophages and eosinophils. GM-CSF has also been reported to have a functional role on non-hematopoietic cells. It can induce human endothelial cells to migrate and proliferate. Additionally, GM-CSF can also stimulate the proliferation of a number of tumor cell lines, including osteogenic sarcoma, carcinoma and adenocarcinoma cell lines. GM-CSF is species specific and human GM-CSF has no biological effects on mouse cells. GM-CSF exerts its biological effects through binding to specific cell surface receptors. The high affinity receptors required for human GM-CSF signal transduction have been shown to be heterodimers consisting of a GM-CSF-specific α chain and a common β chain that is shared by the high-affinity receptors for IL-3 and IL-5.